#tc2011 ep 26

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

*deep breath*

Soooo, yeah. The other shoe has dropped.

The moment I've been simultaneously dreading because it's such a gut punch and looking forward to because I have a LOT to say. Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one.

I played dumb on this instead of analyzing in context and hinting at what was to come because I have biases, and I wanted y'all to understand those biases so you might understand where I'm coming from in how I read this.

That's not to say I lied. I believe the things I've said about her over the course of my liveblog, but there's more to it that we have to get into now.

Now, I won't say there's NO merit to this twist. I see the intended setup and payoff, it raises the stakes for what was supposed to be the next season, and the drama can go places.

But I think it's a misstep because I don't think it's worth as much as what we lost in the process.

I REALLY liked this character and her relationship with Lion-O, and that colors how I respond to this twist and how I want it to go forward. Like I said, I'm biased. So, let's talk about those biases, and how I read Pumyra.

But first, one brief aside:

Mumm-Ra being able to track them was supposed to have been a clue about Pumyra, but like. He was doing that long before they even FOUND Pumyra, so what the hell?

Anyway, I've explained why I like Pumyra. Ever since I got to her introduction in this liveblog I have not shut up about how much I like her. Her spitfire attitude, her strong will, and her unique perspective made her a phenomenal addition to the cast that spiced things up without being a rehash of Lion-O and Tygra's clashes.

She filled a niche that improved the team composition, and she had a really solid arc that showed her as a complex person with multiple sides, able to grow and change. If this twist hadn’t happened, Pumyra would be one of the most well developed characters in the show.

Because this twist completely recontextualizes her and basically undoes all of her development. She's reset right back to where she started, but even more angry and vengeful. But I would prefer to think that her real personality is still more or less what we saw. Like her backstory, we got the gist with the darkest parts hidden.

Her anger at the mistreatment of the cats, helping a baby bird back into its nest, etc. There were these bits of heart to her that don’t scan as just an act to me. And honestly, I don't want to think that this character I liked has suddenly become a blank slate, because she was an AMAZING character.

I think this twist is a misstep because it’s so much LESS interesting than the character development we’ve been watching her go through, which is now being tossed out the window. We already saw her overcome this same general idea, and now you’re saying all that was fake and doesn't count? Thanks, I hate it!

I also haven’t been subtle about how much I like Lion-O and Pumyra’s relationship before this point. I think they had an amazing dynamic of rounding each other out, and they had some great moments together. But, well, this throws all of that out of whack.

We’re meant to assume that she coldly seduced Lion-O, but I don’t find that interesting. And to be frank, that plus the way he accused Cheetara of toying with him and never retracted it onscreen is not a great look for the show.

With Cheetara, it was more interesting for her to not end up with Lion-O because the potential relationship there was superficial and one-sided. But with Pumyra, that potential relationship really felt like a two way street that improved them both, and it felt like they had a real connection.

I don't think it's worth it to just throw all of that away. Again, we’re taking all of this lovingly built character and relationship development and throwing it out the window. And that’s frustrating, so I don’t want that to be how this goes.

Instead, I posit to you the classic mole dilemma: “I was sent to betray these people, but oops, getting to know them made me actually care, and now I have to carry out my mission even though I maybe have doubts.”

Mumm-Ra says he owns her soul now. Depending on how seriously we take that verbage, it implies a level of control that if Pumyra maybe isn't fully on board with something he wants her to do, it doesn’t really matter. And, y'know, it's Mumm-Ra; he doesn't give his underlings a choice. So that gives me some wiggle room to interpret. Please indulge me while I interpret.

She is obviously angry. That anger is real and her reasons are understandable even if it's treading ground we already covered. She's been waiting for this particular catharsis and she's happy to go for it now that she has the chance. But if she DID grow to care for Lion-O, at least on SOME level, that's more interesting to me than it all being a lie

Like I said way back in her first episodes, she met the man she'd assigned all her rage to, and he listened to her, he took responsibility for his negligence, and he was endlessly kind even when she was hostile. You can easily have that genuinely affect her.

Not necessarily “In Love With The Mark”, but not as cut and dried as it looks in this moment, either. Maybe she doesn't even realize it until after this is all said and done. Just a seed of doubt and dissatisfaction. She's angry, but she's also being used.

I also think it’d be really interesting to view it as like a devil’s bargain kind of thing. Yeah, she gets to live and have some revenge on the people she died angry at, but at the cost of helping the monster actually responsible for her death ruin more innocent lives. Is that worth it?

If we assume that the side we saw of her that cares about injustice and the plight of the helpless was real, which I think still fits, then that’s another reason for her to maybe not be okay with where she’s ended up now that she’s here. Careful what you wish for, and all.

If it were up to me, going forward Pumyra would grow torn between anger and conscience, struggling internally, and Lion-O would catch on and save her against all reason yet again. We'd essentially follow through on the arc they already had, but for real and on a grander scale.

Like, remember, what we're finding out now is basically the same as what Pumyra was initially presented with, just moreso. So I think that same trajectory they seemed to be on can still work, as long as you scale it up to match.

And Lion-O CAN help her. He himself went through an all-consuming rage and desire for revenge in Ramlak Rising, which is the exact time Pumyra died. You could tie back to that, how his rage begot her rage, and how he can actually understand her better than she thinks. They both fell into the same trap, but now he can offer her a hand out of it.

I’d also give Pumyra her own character arc reevaluating herself and eventually choosing to join the Thundercats for real. She'd struggle with a complicated tangle of love and hate, and through a personal journey eventually choose love. I think that fits the themes of the show.

Lion-O showed kindness to a lizard, and was repaid with an escape that enabled him to go on this entire journey. He helps those in need wherever he goes, and they in turn help him. Tygra broke the curse on the tiger clan by accepting his bio dad. This is a show about love and compassion and kindness being powerful.

Mumm-Ra's idea in planting Pumyra as a mole was “your emotions will be your undoing” or some such, so I’d find it thematically right to turn that back on him with the power of love winning after all. Like, it would take WORK, but I think it’d be worth it.

And I know none of that was the intent, but this liveblog is about my personal feelings and that’s how I feel. I’m not usually one to advocate for Enemies to Lovers when it’s not actually in the text, but godDAMN, they put in the work.

I don't want to give up on Lion-O/Pumyra or on Pumyra as the character I grew to love, so that’s the biased lens I view this twist through. But hey, one benefit of the show never being finished is that I'm free to write my own storyline and no one can stop me. Which is why that's exactly what I do in my art and my writing.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Aaaaaand, that’s Thundercats 2011.

Like I said after my first rewatch, strong start and strong finish, even if it had a rough patch in the middle. If you can handle having your heart broken by a gut punch cliffhanger with no season two, it’s a banger.

My relationship with this finale is complicated. It’s exciting and climactic, the stakes are raised higher than ever, and it goes full circle to make a thematic statement that’s been part of the series’s core since the beginning. But there will never be closure.

And as a fan with feelings, boy does it suck to have my favorite character and relationship thrown out the window for an (admittedly impactful) eleventh hour villain twist. I’m willing to work with it, but only insofar as writing around it to get back to what I loved.

I know the creative team has talked about things they wanted to do in future seasons, but I don’t pay attention to that. At this point, I don’t care. I’d rather write my own.

No matter what they had in mind, it never made it to screen, and maybe it never would have. Stuff changes mid creative process all the time, and frankly I’m not a fan of the handful of ideas I did end up hearing. But I’m not gonna get into it.

In the end, all we have is this one season. And it’s a GREAT first season, warts and all. There’s no way to know if it would’ve kept that momentum or crashed and burned, but I can still appreciate what we got and keep the ideal future I’d want for it right here in my heart.

Thank you for coming on this journey with me.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

This might be my bias talking again, but despite what he says I don't think Lion-O is giving up on Pumyra either. At least, I don't think he should give up on her.

The way I see it, the things he said to her in The Pit and Birth of the Blades should still hold true even if he has to fight her.

Lion-O has been known to make statements in anger or depression that he later goes back on when he's more clear-headed, and to me this is that. He's hurt right now, but in the long run, he's not one to give up on people or give up on compassion.

After all, "compassion is the right choice" is one of the core themes of the whole show. So I think saying he was wrong to extend compassion to someone shouldn't be the final word on that situation.

And hey look, an explicit statement of that exact thematic throughline!

Lion-O has had a major shock, but his little sister still believes in him.

The road ahead is long and dark, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Having side adventures and eclectic episodes is great for pacing a show like this. It makes the world feel bigger, it gives the overarching story time to breathe and the characters time to develop, and it also gives you the opportunity to have moments like this, where everyone comes together and it's awesome.

Though I will admit I would've liked to see Viragor and the Wood Forgers. Lion-O never told anyone about Drifter, and the Petalars must be relative millennia removed by now, but it would've been nice to see the Wood Forgers without Zigg's influence.

Also, the fact that they specifically say they bring people that Lion-O helped makes the dogs' inclusion funny. Sure, Dobo's on good terms with them, but the person Lion-O helped in Dog City was Pumyra.

I don't mean to detract from this moment, it really is a fist punching hell yeah moment. I just can't help but notice details sometimes.

And with the power of friendship and sheer numbers, even a Stone-empowered Mumm-Ra can be overcome.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

God, it was good to get all that off my chest.

Anyway, on a much less serious note, there's an episode of the 80s show where Mumm-Ra infiltrates the Cats' Lair disguised as a Thundercat named Pumm-Ra, and y'all, when I watched that episode I made the connection about halfway through and I WONDERED.

The other thing I want to note is that the Tech Stone is the stone Lion-O used to get the Armor of Omens way back in Legacy, so it is consistently the one that can power a full armor suit on its own.

Based on that, and the fact that the Spirit Stone can only generate an arm, it might even be the second most powerful of the four, after the War Stone. We’ll never know for sure, because the fourth stone is completely unknown.

The others aren't anywhere near as affected by this development as Lion-O because, if you didn't notice, Pumyra never significantly interacted with anyone but Lion-O. The party split in The Soul Sever could've been a chance to explore dynamics, but NOPE!

In my own storyline, I'd also like to explore an order/chaos friendship with Cheetara, Panthro commiserating as a fellow traumatized soldier, the twins finding her soft spots, and her and Tygra sassing each other. But that's a story for another time.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Tygra, this isn't the time to be petty.

But also, excellent shade.

And the battle is ON.

A lot of this episode is fighting. It's GOOD fighting, especially the later parts, but it means there isn't as much for me to comment on beyond "this looks really cool". So some of the episode is gonna go by quicker than usual. Some of it.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

I promised I'd go back through the dvds and look for character art on the menu screens, but it turns out they all just use the same four pieces of art that I already shared, so here's the main menu screen to round out the collection.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Well... crash landing is still landing. ^^;

I think we can presume Vultaire officially joined up with Mumm-Ra and his gang, and the people of Avista probably no longer recognize him as prefect after he, yknow, tried to sell them out to the incarnation of evil. And the Thundercats have more than proven that they're trustworthy allies.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Despite how Vultaire made it seem, the city didn't immediately start plummeting. He was just trying to get the Thundercats to back off. Obviously a system like this would need some kind of buffer in case of emergencies. Avista may be arrogant, but not THAT arrogant.

There WAS a way to get the Stone without killing the city all along, but no one was taking the time to entertain it until there was barely any time left to do it.

You can always count on the Thundercats to escape certain death.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Yeah, yeah, you're not owned, Mumm-Ra. Now scram.

One last knife twist for the road. Mumm-Ra hates emotions, but he sure does love using them against people.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

The Thundercats may have the power of friendship on their side, but Mumm-Ra is closer to full power than he's been in millennia.

But that doesn't mean they're out of luck, or out of options.

Speaking of the power of friendship...

It's cavalry time, baby!

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Now, not only do the Thundercats have to fight for their lives and the safety of all Third Earth, they have to do it on ground that is actively falling out from under them.

Never underestimate the adorable mascot.

*snerk*

It all comes down to a VERY high stakes game of keep-away.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

I'm serious, the animation in this fight is REALLY good, even if I can't show it well in still images. The choreography is also spectacular.

The Stones have been shown to have some semblance of personality. They can choose who they grant their power to. Lion-O got to come back to life because the Spirit Stone deemed him worthy. Mumm-Ra can force power out of the Stones, but that doesn't mean truly he has their full power.

From what we've seen, the Stones respond to strength, yes, but moreso to character. The Stones protect Lion-O because they know he is far more worthy than Mumm-Ra.

And now we get to end run around the moral dilemma because Mumm-Ra cut out the middleman. The fuse is lit.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Damn, in just a few hours, the twins have covered ground that took weeks and months originally. Those boards are serious business.

Forget Avista, the BERBILS are the real tech masters. They don't even need a Stone.

But now they've searched far and wide, and exhausted every option they could think of. And now they must return to their friends empty-handed.

Or do they? ;)

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

This is where I should mention that Vultaire is an adaptation of Vultureman, the fourth general of Mumm-Ra's forces in the 80s show.

Like Addicus and Kaynar, he was given a real name, but he was also given a major overhaul in context and motivation, and it's really cool. I really love how 2011 takes the spirit of 80s and gives it a new spin that fleshes things out and really works.

Never underestimate the speedster, and never threaten the speedster's boyfriend.

I love these two to death, and I love seeing them save each other, but this dialogue doesn't really do it for me, sorry to say. It's just... an odd thing to say out loud, and it's not even true. Their relationship isn't something you can reduce to that, it's things like mutual admiration and support. I'm just gonna say it's slightly awkward banter and move on.

Still love them.

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

Time for a climactic showdown, I think.

Mumm-Ra's lost every direct confrontation with Lion-O since the Tower of Omens, but he's very confident about this one. Even after he's BEEN defeated, he still can't comprehend the idea that he's fallible. Evil cannot comprehend good.

And Lion-O, my BOY, does not flinch. He is not the unprepared Prince he was the first times he fought Mumm-Ra. He is a battle tested King who will never waver in the face of evil.

From here on, it's an all out spectacle. They really brought their A game to this fight between Lion-O and Mumm-Ra, and for good reason.